Scribd

1

Case No.: 08-CV-5780-LHK ORDER DENYING LEAVE TO FILE MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION, FINDING DEFENDANT STEVEN VACHANI LIABLE AS A MATTER OF LAW, AND GRANTING DAMAGES AND PERMANENT INJUNCTIVE RELIEF

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

U n i t e d S t a t e s D i s t r i c t C o u r t

F o r t h e N o r t h e r n D i s t r i c t o f C a l i f o r n i a

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA SAN JOSE DIVISION

FACEBOOK, INC., Plaintiff, v. POWER VENTURES, INC., a Cayman Island corporation, and STEVE VACHANI, an individual, Defendants. )) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Case No.: 08-CV-5780-LHK ORDER DENYING LEAVE TO FILE MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION, FINDING DEFENDANT STEVEN VACHANI LIABLE AS A MATTER OF LAW, AND GRANTING DAMAGES AND PERMANENT INJUNCTIVE RELIEF Defendant Power Ventures, Inc. (“Power Ventures”) and Defendant Steve Vachani (“Vachani”) (collectively, “Defendants”) request leave to file a motion for reconsideration of the February 16, 2012 summary judgment order issued by Judge James Ware. Plaintiff, Facebook, Inc. moves for statutory and compensatory damages, permanent injunctive relief, and a grant of summary judgment holding that Vachani is personally liable for violations of the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (“CAN-SPAM Act”), 15 U.S.C § 7701; the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), 18 U.S.C. § 1030; and California Penal Code § 502. Pursuant to Civil Local Rule 7-1(b), the Court finds a hearing unnecessary for

Case5:08-cv-05780-LHK Document370 Filed09/25/13 Page1 of 34

2


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28



resolution of these matters and accordingly VACATES the hearing and case management conference set for September 26, 2013. Having considered Defendants’ papers and the record in this case, Defendants’ request for leave to file a motion for reconsideration is DENIED. Plaintiff’s motion for statutory and compensatory damages, motion for permanent injunctive relief, and motion for summary judgment on the issue of Vachani’s personal liability are GRANTED. The Court proceeds to discuss each issue in turn.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Factual Background

Facebook owns and operates the eponymous social networking website located at facebook.com. First Amended Complaint (“FAC”) ¶ 2. Power Ventures is a corporation incorporated in the Cayman Islands and doing business in California. Answer ¶ 10. It operates the website www.power.com, which offers to integrate users’ various social media accounts into a single experience. FAC ¶ 5; Answer ¶ 5. Vachani is the Chief Executive Officer of power.com. Answer ¶ 11. Facebook brought this action against Defendants in December 2008, alleging violations of the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (“CAN-SPAM Act”), 15 U.S.C § 7701; the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), 18 U.S.C. § 1030; California Penal Code § 502; and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), 17 U.S.C. § 1201; copyright infringement under 17 U.S.C. § 101; trademark infringement under 15 U.S.C. §§ 1114 and 1125(a) and California law; and violations of California Business and Professions Code Section 17200. ECF Nos. 1, 9. Facebook complains that Defendants employ Facebook’s proprietary data without its permission by inducing Facebook users to provide their login information and then using that information to “scrape” Facebook’s proprietary material. FAC ¶¶ 49, 50, 52. Defendants then display Facebook’s material on power.com. FAC ¶ 52. Facebook asserts that it never gave Defendants permission to use its material in this way. FAC ¶ 54. Facebook also accuses Defendants of sending unsolicited and deceptive email messages to Facebook users. FAC ¶¶ 65-69. To launch their site, Defendants promised power.com users a


3


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28



chance to win $100 if they invited and signed up the most new users to Defendants’ site. FAC ¶ 65. Defendants provided to their users a list of the users’ Facebook friends from which the users could choose people to whom to send the invitation. FAC ¶ 66. Power.com sent unsolicited commercial emails to those friends that included on the “from” line a “@facebookmail.com” address. FAC ¶¶ 66, 68. The content of the message included a line that the message was from “The Facebook Team.” FAC ¶ 69, 70. Facebook contends that it never gave permission to send these messages and that the emails were deceptive because they “do not properly identify the initiators of the messages, nor do they provide clear or conspicuous notice that the messages are advertisements for” power.com. FAC ¶ 71.

B. Procedural Background

On February 18, 2011, Judge Ware granted the parties’ stipulation to dismiss Facebook’s DMCA claim, copyright and trademark infringement claims, and claims for violations of California Business and Professions Code Section 17200. ECF No. 97. On May 9, 2011, Defendants moved for summary judgment on Facebook’s CFAA, Section 502, and CAN-SPAM Act claims. ECF No. 98. On November 17, 2011, Facebook moved for summary judgment on Facebook’s § 502 and CFAA claims. ECF No. 214 (“§ 502/CFAA Motion”). On November 18, 2011, Facebook moved for summary judgment on Facebook’s CAN-SPAM Act claim. ECF No. 215 (“CAN-SPAM Motion”). On February 16, 2012, Judge Ware issued an order denying Defendants’ motion for summary judgment and granting summary judgment in Facebook’s favor as to Facebook’s § 502, CFAA, and CAN-SPAM Act claims. ECF No. 275 (“February 16 order”). In the February 16 order, Judge Ware requested additional briefing regarding Vachani’s individual liability and the amount of damages Facebook should receive in light of the February 16 order.

Id.

at 19. On March 30, 2012, Facebook filed its supplemental brief regarding damages and the liability of Vachani. ECF No. 299 (“Facebook Damages/Liability Brief”). The same day, Defendants lodged with the court a brief regarding damages and the liability of Vachani. ECF No. 288 (“Defendants’ Damages/Liability Brief”). On August 15, 2012, Vachani also submitted a
